Fun Facts About the Name Masa
- 545 babies named Masa: U.S. records list 545 babies given the name Masa from 1880 through 2025. Even 12 boys received the name Masa - about 1 boy for every 44 girls.
What Does the Name Masa Mean?
Masa is a Japanese name element written with a kanji chosen by the family, so it has no single fixed meaning. The characters most often read masa in personal names are 雅 ("elegant, refined"), 正 ("correct, righteous"), 政 ("government, rule"), 昌 ("prosperous, flourishing"), and 真 ("true, genuine"). Japanese name dictionaries list Masa under each of these characters separately, and the sense of the name follows whichever character was chosen. Masa is a kun reading used mainly in names; the same characters carry other readings, such as sei or shō, in ordinary words.
Similar-sounding names in other languages have separate origins. In Slavic use, Maša (usually written Masha, and sometimes without the diacritic as Masa) is a short form of Marija, the Slavic form of Maria; in Serbian, Croatian, and Slovene it is also given as a name in its own right. In the Hebrew Bible, Massa (מַשָּׂא) is listed among the sons of Ishmael in Genesis 25:14, and Massah (מַסָּה) is the place near Rephidim where the Israelites tested God in Exodus 17:7; English Bibles spell both with a double s, and the personal name Massa is sometimes explained as "burden." Modern Hebrew masa (מַסָּע) means "journey." These Hebrew words are not related to the Japanese name.
Masa Name History & Origins
In Japanese naming, masa is one of a limited stock of sound elements joined to build two-character given names. It can come first, as in Masahiro (正弘 or 雅弘), Masako (正子 or 雅子), Masayuki (正之 or 雅之), and Masao (正雄 or 政雄), or second, as in Yoshimasa (芳正) and Takamasa (隆正). It also stands alone, written 正 or 雅, and appears in men's and women's names alike. Documented bearers of the element include Hōjō Tokimasa (時政), the first regent of the Kamakura shogunate, and Ashikaga Yoshimasa (義政), the eighth Muromachi shogun, who both use it as the second character. The element by itself carries no fixed sense; the meaning comes from the character chosen for it.
Maša took its modern shape through Slavic shortening and affectionate formation from Marija, with Russian Маша - the everyday familiar form of Мария - as the best-known example; in South Slavic languages Maša became an independent given name. English texts commonly write it as Masha, or, dropping the caron, as Masa. Modern Hebrew masa ("journey") is an ordinary noun rather than a traditional personal name, and the biblical names Massa and Massah belong to a different naming tradition altogether.
How Popular is the Name Masa?
Masa has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2023. Its best rank was #2,663 in 2023.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #4,041 | 36 | 0.0022% |
| 2024 | #2,995 | 55 | 0.0034% |
| 2023 | #2,663 | 66 | 0.0041% |
| 2022 | #3,745 | 41 | 0.0025% |
| 2021 | #4,470 | 31 | 0.0019% |
| 2020 | #3,762 | 39 | 0.0024% |
| 2019 | #4,311 | 33 | 0.0020% |
| 2018 | #5,270 | 25 | 0.0015% |
| 2017 | #6,714 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 2016 | #3,501 | 45 | 0.0025% |
| 2015 | #5,772 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2014 | #9,944 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2013 | #9,414 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2012 | #13,017 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2011 | #14,295 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2010 | #11,910 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2009 | #9,214 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2008 | #12,250 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2007 | #19,484 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2006 | #14,576 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2005 | #9,892 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2003 | #8,865 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2002 | #14,772 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1923 | #5,454 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1919 | #4,614 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #10,370 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1919 | #4,565 | 5 | 0.0005% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Masa Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have psychic power. You can carry on for others with joy. You have a receptive nature and may bear burdens for others. You are pragmatic, thorough, strong-willed, practical and stubborn at times. You are hard working, often martyr to duty. You like home and security above all. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.
✦ Masa's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Masa's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.